The first half of the season is officially in the books. A handful of teams are effectively out of the postseason race, while others are off to a better start than expected.

Here's a look back, a forecast of what's to come and a few potential trades that could bolster lineups before the trade deadline:

The halfway point

Every season has its fair share of surprising teams and players who toss aside preseason expectations, for better or for worse. One such team is the Milwaukee Brewers, who seemed destined for mediocrity but have so far been arguably the best team in the league.

After winning just 74 games all of last year, the Brewers have won 51 games through Tuesday's action and appear poised to continue their success into the second half. A big part of the Brewers' success is coming from a lesser-known source, catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who was tabbed by Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci as the front-runner to be named MVP of the National League.

Boston Red Sox's Xander Bogaerts reacts after his deep fly was caught in the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs at Fenway Park in Boston, Tuesday, July 1, 2014. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)Elise Amendola

The defending world champions appeared poised for another strong year, with full seasons from talented youngsters Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley Jr. expected to offset the departures of Stephen Drew and Jacoby Ellsbury. While the two rookies have underperformed -- the latter drastically -- and Drew is back, the larger issue is an offense that has up and died, scraping together a bare 3.79 runs per game, virtually tied for the league's second-lowest rate.

A possible side-effect of the Red Sox scuffling start is that just one Red Sox player is a strong candidate to be an All-Star selection. Reliever Koji Uehara seems like a worthy selection, writes USA Today's Paul White. Meanwhile, it appears a longtime Red Sox rival will represent the American League, whether he deserves it or not:

At the risk of sacrilege - of course Derek Jeter doesn't deserve the spot on this season's statistical merit. Yes, he'll start and, no, we're not about to dissent. Even without Jeter, there's no clear-cut front-runner based on performance. But Alexei Ramirez of the White Sox is our pick for the guy who has to go out there when Jeter leaves the game - a tough call over Erick Aybar of the Angels.

• The Indians aren't off to the start they hoped for after making the playoffs in 2013, currently sitting eight games behind the Tigers in the AL Central. It has been a roller-coaster season and the numbers tell the story. Cleveland.com's Zack Meisel breaks down the most telling statistics and what they might mean for the rest of the Indians' season.

One trend the Indians will hope reverses is supposed ace Justin Masterson's decreased velocity, which has contributed to his ballooning ERA. A statistic that is unlikely to repeat itself in the second half of the season, however, is Carlos Santana's batting average:

Since coming back from a concussion in early June, Santana has batted .320 with a 1.053 OPS. He racked up walks even when his bat was cold. Now, his power has returned and he doesn't have to worry about catching or playing third base.

Trade deadline approaching

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher David Price delivers to the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning of an interleague baseball game Wednesday, June 25, 2014, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)Chris O'Meara

The league's non-waiver trade deadline is July 31, meaning teams have less than a month to finish building the teams they hope will be playing well into October. A player that has been the subject of trade rumors is Rays ace David Price, who has rebounded nicely after an uncharacteristic start to the season.

Price leads the American League in strikeouts but is on a team that's already almost out of contention in the AL East. The 2012 Cy Young winner made it clear that he would like to stay in Tampa Bay, but it will depend on if the Rays can get back into the playoff race: (via ESPN)

"If we continue to play good baseball the way we have and continue to win, I feel like we have a shot, so I think that would lessen my chances of getting traded." ...

"If I do get traded, that mound is still 60 feet, 6 inches away from home plate. The bases are still 90 feet (apart). Still nine players on the field. The game doesn't change," Price said. "It's just the uniform I'm wearing might change, and then my teammates. That is a very big deal. But I feel like it's something I can handle."

Another team that might be having a midseason fire sale is the Phillies, who are currently in last place in the NL East, 9.5 games behind the first-place Braves. If the Phillies do begin to unload contracts, pitcher A.J. Burnett might be on his way back to Pittsburgh, where he spend the previous two seasons. (via NJ.com)

Burnett, 5-7 with a 3.89 ERA, has drawn interest from the Pittsburgh Pirates but the caveat is any team that acquires Burnett will likely have him for the next two seasons, as he is owed $8M for the rest of this season and can exercise a $7.5M player option for 2015. The Phillies could pick up some of that tab if they do decide to trade him.

According to an MLB Daily Dish report, the Pirates are among the nine teams on Burnett's "Acceptable Assignment" list where he would not exercise his veto power of a potential trade.

Lee's rehab from his elbow injury has progressed to the simulated game stage, and if he's back in Philadelphia by mid-month, he's more likely to be dealt. That said, a team might reasonably want to see how he progresses by waiting until the August waiver period -- when his remaining salary would also scare most teams away from putting in a claim on him -- before committing.

• The Astros were forced into damage control mode this week after documents leaked internal memos that detailed, among other things, attempted trades over a 10-month period. The memos reference many players and prospects including then-Astros pitcher Bud Norris, Red Sox prospects Xander Bogaerts, Gerin Cecchini and Jackie Bradley Jr., and Yankees outfielder Ichiro Suzuki.

"I think [Zimmerman] should be playing left. Rendon's a good third baseman. He should be playing third. We've got one of the best second basemen in the league in Danny Espinosa," Harper told reporters. "Of course, we want the best-hitting lineup in there. [But] I think Rendon playing third and Zim playing left is something that would be good for this team. I think that should be what's happening."

Nationals manager Matt Williams took the high road when asked about Harper's comments:

"Happy to have him back," the first-year Nationals manager told reporters. "When he's out there, regardless of where he's at, we'd like him to catch it when it's hit to him and hit it when it's thrown to him. ... I don't have any comment other than that. ... Hopefully, I can write his name in there every single day the rest of the year. That would be very important."

Manny Ramirez smiles during a news conference at Principal Park in Des Moines, Iowa Monday, June 30, 2014. Ramirez, a two-time champion with Boston and a two-time offender of Major League Baseball's rules against performance-enhancing drugs, joined the Triple-A Iowa Cubs as a player/coach after signing with Chicago in late May. (AP Photo/The Register, Mary Willie)Mary Willie

• Manny Ramirez has done a lot of things in his baseball career. Twelve All-Star selections, two World Series championships, a World Series MVP award, and a 50-game suspension for violating baseball's drug policy, among other things. Now, at 42 years old, Ramirez is trying to resurrect his career as a coach and part-time player for the Triple-A Iowa Cubs.

Many people wondered openly if it's all a publicity stunt of some kind. Others, traveling down a more likely road, asked if guiding minor-league players provides a chance to gain a baseball foothold and shot to become a major-league coach.

Ramirez was asked, too, if part of it is an effort at reputation repair.

If not those things, why go through the grind? Why labor in the minors after so many seasons of shining on the sport's biggest stage and filling the bank account?

"When you love the game and you want to help young players and give your testimonial to the things that you went through so they don't go through that, it's easy," he said.

"Through the years I've talked to a lot of friends of mine that have played for the Cubs," Ortiz said Tuesday night before the Red Sox hosted the Cubs in the second game of a three-game series at Fenway Park. "The one thing that everyone talked about was the schedule in Chicago. They get excited walking into a city that's based on baseball, but once they start dealing with the schedule it kind of mentally wears you down." ...

"When you come down to the Cubs' schedule it's a game-changer, believe it or not.

• The "hot-foot" is one of many pranks popular among bored bench players and pitchers. Dodgers announcer Vin Scully is maybe the best in the business at providing color commentary no matter what's happening. Enjoy:

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• With the World Cup in full swing, here's a look at the top "soccer" moments in baseball, compiled by ESPN's Jim Caple. Flopping and kicking are well covered, as well as an infamous header home run by Jose Canseco.